A blog commenting on various aspects of the private collecting and trade in archaeological artefacts today and their effect on the archaeological record.

Wednesday, 2 September 2015

Swiss Return Ancient Octadrachm Coin to Greece

The coin according to GcRap; The high-denomination octadrachm -- or eight-drachma -- coin was struck
by a little-known Thracian ruler named Mosses around 480 B.C., the time
of the second failed Persian invasion of Greece.Thessaloniki University
professor of archaeology Michalis Tiverios said examples of Mosses'
currency are very rare."There are very few coins struck in his name,"
Tiverios said. "Octadrachms were heavy coins used for transactions
abroad, usually for mercenaries' wages, which is why they are very
rarely found in Greece."

A
Swiss court has ordered the confiscation of a very rare ancient silver
coin that was allegedly illegally excavated in northern Greece and sold
at auction in Switzerland, Greek and Swiss officials say.The lawyer
representing Greece in the case said Thursday that the ruling in October
opens the way for the early 5th century B.C. coin's return to Greece.
The debt-crippled country's rich cultural heritage has long suffered
depredations from antiquities smugglers supplying a lucrative
international market. [...] Greek authorities have pressed charges of
antiquities theft in the case, but no suspects have yet been named.

And
it would seem no suspect now will ever be named, let alone a conviction
achieved in this case. Which Swiss auction house accepted this items
for sale and with what paperwork? Who put it up for sale and how did
they demonstrate title to such a remarkable object? Three years on, the
answers to these questions are apparently not in the public domain. A
precious ancient object surfaces, is seized, the authorities tell us
(stakeholders) that they are investigating. Now can they be accountable
and show us what they have done and why the case was not taken any
further than merely sending the coin home?

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About Me

British archaeologist living and working in Warsaw, Poland. Since the early 1990s (or even longer) a primary interest has been research on artefact hunting and collecting and the market in portable antiquities in the international context and their effect on the archaeological record.

Abbreviations used in this blog

"coiney" - a term I use for private collector of dug up ancient coins, particularly a member of the Moneta-L forum or the ACCG

"heap-of-artefacts-on-a-table-collecting" the term rather speaks for itself, an accumulation of loose artefacts with no attempt to link each item with documented origins. Most often used to refer to metal detectorists (ice-cream tubs-full) and ancient coin collectors (Roman coins sold in aggregated bulk lots)